The Eleaf iStick. So what's all the fuss about? December 30 2014, 1 Comment

Many of you may have heard of the term 'Box Mods' and not be familiar with what this means. In short, its an electronic cigarette device, shaped like a box. Coming in a variety of sizes, they offer an alternative shape to the conventional tube shaped ecig. A key benefit, is that they invariably contain longer life batteries and they stand up without toppling over so easily.

2014 has seen a wide range of box mods come on to the market, from the HANA Modz 30w unit, upgraded iTaste MVP at 20W to the Eleaf iStick. Today's blog post discusses the Eleaf in a little more detail.

Made in Asia, the Eleaf is a max 20W variable voltage variable wattage device, housing a 2100 mAh battery and offering pass through technology as well as an LCD indicator screen. The unit comes with a 510 to Ego thread adaptor allowing a range of different tanks and clearomisers to fit on to it; as well as providing an inbuilt ohms reader. So what do these features offer a user and why do these seem to sell out everywhere?

An ohms reader enables the vaper to determine what level of resistance their current clearomiser or tank is set at. It is a good judge if a coil has begun to cause problems but it is also useful for those looking to take a step into building their own coils on a dripper tank, also known as an RDA. While the Eleaf has a bottom threshold of 0.8 ohms, which won't operate the Aspire Atlantis; it certainly helps you configure the right resistance for you, for 90% of needs. Low resistance means a big warm hit and a storm cloud's worth of vapour on the exhale. Higher resistance reduces this, but also conserves ejuice that bit more. Someone who vapes 18mg on a 2.1 ohm clearomiser, may find 6mg on a low ohm tank just as effective for their throat hit needs.

With the variable wattage to 20Watts, it enables the user to adjust efficiency of the power running into the tank as the battery strength falls, but again also allows for big vapour production. Variable voltage meanwhile changes the temperature at which the coils heat and can be used to produce a warm hit or cooler hit on the throat. Certain flavours suit different voltages. Variable voltage helps you find a setting that suits different juices. With the variable features, the Eleaf gives you almost complete control over the vaping experience. Don't be put off by this range of options though, as you can use the device on perfectly normal settings and be safe in the knowledge that you have a high quality device.

The feature of pass through technology is seen more often now on mid range and above devices. It simply allows the device to be used safely while being charged. This is great when you have run low on battery and don't have a second device to hand. Added to this, is the on screen battery meter which means you shouldn't ever need to be caught short.

The final great feature of the Eleaf is the battery life. Packed inside the tiny box is an 18650 battery which offers battery life between cycles of 1-2 day usage. Where the wattage and voltage is jacked right up, this is likely to be less. A conventional user however should be very happy with the battery life.